Pick a book that you've read, and have enjoyed enough to recommend to other readers. It can be a book you've read recently, or a book you read years ago - it's up to you - but make sure you tell us why you love the book (like a mini review). You make the post as long or as short as you like.

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My Friday Recommended read

is

Peaches for Monsieur le Curé

by

Joanne Harris

Published

My 5 ***** Review

This eagerly awaited third instalment by Joanne Harris is a continuation of the story she started in Chocolat and The Lollipop Shoes. Returning to Lansquenet with her daughters, Vianne Rocher finds her old adversary, Monsieur le Curé, Francis Reynaud, in need of support. The town of Lansquenet is as mysterious as ever, but the dynamics of the town have changed, and for some of its inhabitants, increasing hostilities threaten the very fabric of life. It is the incomers from North Africa, who have brought their own changes to the community, and as their call to prayer from the muezzin competes across the banks of river Tannes, the ringing of the church bells echoes and reiterates the changes which are taking place. As always there is intrigue, and salacious gossip, but underneath the veneer of respectability, there is the darkness of prejudice, intolerance and religious persecution, all cleverly woven within a narrative that grabs your attention from the very beginning.

It is very easy to lose yourself in this book. The writing is as good as we have come to expect from Joanne Harris, she writes with such consummate ease and brings the town of Lansquenet alive in such a way that very easily you find yourself walking the cobbled streets with Monsieur le Curé, and sipping a cafe crème at Josephine’s cafe. The food descriptions are as sumptuous as ever, the smell of peaches literally leaps of the page, so much so, you can actually taste the fruit, and watch as the dribble of peach juice trickles down Monsieur le Curé’s chin.

Returning to Lansquenet is like meeting up with a cherished friend, one that you haven't seen for awhile but in whose company you feel safe and secure and eager for news. I wanted the story to go on forever, such is the power of storytelling, and the ability to return to places you only see in your dreams is quite magical.